McMann (6-0) opted to keep the fight with Baszler (14-7) on the feet in the first round, and she pressed the action with punching combinations. Baszler showed a much-improved striking game and landed kicks to the body and lead leg of McMann. As the round progressed, McMann began to land right hooks and uppercuts, but Baszler thwarted her attempt to take the fight to the mat in the final minute.

Baszler remained effective with her counterstrikes in the second round, and she worked for a kneebar after McMann took her down. McMann punched her way free and escaped an armbar soon after and then returned to her feet. She remained aggressive with punches in the third round, and Baszler answered with more kicks. McMann scored a pair of takedowns and landed some hard left hands as Baszler battled back to her feet against the cage. With just seconds left in the fight, Baszler rocked McMann with a right hook, and McMann clinched until the bell.

After three hard-fought rounds, the fighters received a standing ovation as they waited for the judges’ scorecards to be read. David Clifton and Victoria Miller-Pence both scored the fight 29-28 for McMann. Judge Henry Gueary saw the fight 30-27 for the Olympian, who took the unanimous-decision victory and remains unbeaten in her young MMA career. The bout received “Fight of the Night” honors.

The winner of the McMann-Baszler bout originally was scheduled to compete for the inaugural Invicta FC bantamweight title in October, but a lingering injury likely will keep McMann out of action until early next year. She will still compete for the belt upon her return.

Davis, Carmouche among main card winners at Invicta FC 2

Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Japanese jujutsu black belt Alexis “Ally-Gator” Davis (12-5) made a big statement in her Invicta FC debut by becoming the first woman to submit former Smackgirl champion Hitomi “Girlfight Monster” Akano (18-10) in MMA competition. Davis dominated the bout with Akano and finished her Japanese foe with a rear-naked choke at the 3:41 mark of round two.

Davis rocked Akano early in the second round and took the fight to the mat. From there, she used punches to set up a move to Akano’s back and worked to secure the choke until Akano reluctantly tapped out. Davis has won four of her past five fights with the lone setback coming via razor-thin majority decision to upcoming Strikeforce title challenger Sarah Kaufman.

In another battle between bantamweight contenders, Liz “Girl-Rilla” Carmouche (7-2) fought through a strong first round from Kaitlin Young (7-6-1) and overwhelmed her opponent on the ground. Young’s striking and takedown defense were the key factors in the first round, but Carmouche took her down and landed hard punches from the top in the second stanza. She took Young’s back and locked on a rear-naked choke for the submission win at the 3:34 mark of the second round. Carmouche likely will be a major player in the Invicta FC bantamweight title picture.

Jewels lightweight (114-pound) champion Ayaka Hamasaki (8-0) kept her unbeaten record intact by submitting late replacement Lacey “The Ladie” Schuckman (7-5) with an armbar at the 4:45 mark of round three. Hamasaki controlled the bout on the ground, but Schuckman’s strength and defensive grappling kept her in the fight until Hamasaki was finally able to secure the armbar in the bout’s dying seconds.

Strikeforce veteran Amanda “Lioness of the Ring” Nunes (7-2) showed that she is not just a striker when she choked out Raquel “Rocky” Pa’aluhi (2-3). The technical submission victory came at the 2:24 mark of round one. Pa’aluhi scored an early takedown after some vicious leg kicks from Nunes, but Nunes took her back in a scramble and worked for the fight-ending rear-naked choke that rendered Pa’aluhi unconscious.

Another former Strikeforce competitor, Sarah “The Monster” D’Alelio (6-2), picked up her second straight submission victory inside the Invicta FC cage. D’Alelio defeated Brazilian veteran Vanessa Porto (14-5) with a reverse triangle armbar at the 3:16 mark of the first round. Porto countered an early takedown with an armbar and a kneebar attempt, but D’Alelio stayed calm and transitioned to back control. She trapped Porto in a reverse triangle choke and then wrenched back on Porto’s left arm for the tap.

Rising star Barb “Little Warrior” Honchak (6-2) sent a message to the rest of the flyweight division with her most dominant win to date. Honchak handed Bethany Marshall (4-1) the first loss of her pro career via rear-naked choke submission at the 1:22 mark of round two. Honchak controlled the first round with punches and elbows from top position. She took Marshall down in round two and battered her with more strikes, then locked on the choke for the win.

Opening up the main card, four-time Strikeforce veteran Julia “The Jewel” Budd (3-2) earned a one-sided TKO victory over Sweden’s Elina Nilsson (2-3). Budd took Nilsson down right away and struck from the top with punches and elbows to the body. She passed to mount and unleashed a final barrage of elbows for the stoppage at the 3:49 mark of round one.

Carla Esparza earns big win on Invicta FC 2 prelims

Standout wrestler Carla Esparza (7-2) won for the fourth time in her past five fights in the final fight on the Invicta FC 2 undercard. Esparza engaged in a back-and-forth ground battle with Sarah “White Tiger” Schneider (6-6) before finishing her with punches at the 4:28 mark of the second round. The win was Esparza’s first by way of TKO since her February 2010 pro debut.

Esparza’s rapidly improving striking skills were on display early in round one, but Schneider was able to take the fight to the ground, where she landed some solid punches from the top. When Schneider attempted a heel hook, Esparza wisely got back to her feet. She reversed a takedown and landed punches before the bell. Esparza scored a pair of takedowns of her own in the second round and fought out of an inverted triangle choke. She took Schneider’s back and landed punches until the fight was waved off.

In what was easily the most impressive performance of her career, Nicdali “The Night Queen” Rivera-Calanoc (8-6) earned a clear-cut unanimous-decision victory over “South Valley’s Own” Angelica Chavez (4-2) at 105 pounds. Scores were 30-27 and 29-28 (twice) for Rivera-Calanoc, who had briefly flirted with retirement following a loss at Invicta FC 1. Rivera-Calanoc held a clear advantage in the striking exchanges and kept Chavez pinned down with ground and pound. Chavez never gave up and nearly came back with a last-minute victory when she trapped Rivera-Calanoc in a rear-naked choke and an armbar, but time expired.

Raquel “Rocky” Pennington (2-1) handed Sarah “Cheesecake” Moras (2-1) the first loss of her MMA career via unanimous decision. Scores were 30-27 and 29-28 (twice). The fight was contested almost entirely on the ground, and Pennington’s submission attempts and ground and pound late in the fight were enough to earn the victory on the scorecards.

Former two-time amateur champion Jessamyn “The Gun” Duke (1-0) kicked off her pro career with an impressive victory over kickboxing veteran Suzie “La China” Montero (1-1). Duke landed big knees in the clinch and punches from the top on the ground through the first two rounds. She avoided a triangle choke and an armbar from Montero and then finished her off with ground and pound for the TKO win at the 2:32 mark of round three.

Jocelyn “Lights Out” Lybarger (1-0) also got off to a good start in her pro debut. Lybarger took a unanimous-decision victory over jiu-jitsu practitioner Cheryl “Kid Chaos” Chan (0-1), who held three titles during her amateur career. Lybarger scored takedowns in all three rounds, and she kept Chan down with strikes from the top. In round three, Chan countered with an inverted-triangle choke. She held Lybarger in place until shortly before the bell, but it was too little, too late. Lybarger earned the nod on the scorecards as all three judges scored the fight 29-28.

Invicta FC 2 began with an atomweight bout between former three-time amateur champions “Lightning” Liz McCarthy (1-0) and Jessica Philippus (0-1). McCarthy got the better of the striking exchanges throughout round one and dropped Philippus on two occasions. Philippus, who had endured a tough weight cut for the fight, began to show considerable damage on her face, and the cageside doctor stopped the bout after the first round due to her badly swollen left eye. McCarthy picked up an impressive TKO victory as a result.

Penne faces Sugiyama in Invicta FC 3 title bout

On Oct. 6, Invicta Fighting Championships returns with its third card and its first title fight. Invicta FC 3 will be headlined by a 105-pound atomweight championship bout between fast-rising American star Jessica Penne (9-1) and unbeaten Jewels featherweight queen (106-pound) champion Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama (8-0). The matchup was officially announced during Saturday’s Invicta FC 2 stream.

Penne has won back-to-back fights since dropping down to 105 pounds after a successful stint in the strawweight division. At Invicta FC 1 in April, Penne landed a devastating knee that broke opponent Lisa Ellis’ nose, and she finished the fight with punches on the ground. Penne is one of MMA’s most well-rounded female fighters, and she has eyes on claiming the top spot in the 105-pound division with a win over Sugiyama in two months.

Sugiyama has enjoyed a quick rise up the ranks in her native Japan. She has won all five of her fights under the Jewels banner and became the promotion’s first 106-pound champion with two victories in one night in December. In her most recent fight, Sugiyama defeated former Valkyrie rival Yasuko Tamada for a second time. Much like Penne, Sugiyama is also a well-rounded competitor, and she will have an opportunity to capture her second MMA title when she makes her North American debut.

Invicta FC 3 is tentatively scheduled to take place at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kan., but the event may be moved to a new location.

Yamaguchi earns second win over Tomimatsu at “Jewels: 20th Ring”

One week prior to the Invicta FC 2 card, Japan’s all-female Jewels promotion showcased its “20th Ring” event from Differ Ariake in Tokyo. In the main event, final Valkyrie featherweight champion “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi (10-4-1) defeated fellow grappler Emi Tomimatsu (5-5) for the second time. All three judges scored the fight for Yamaguchi after two hard-fought rounds.

The opening five minutes of the Yamaguchi-Tomimatsu rematch were contested primarily in the clinch. Neither fighter held a clear advantage, but Yamaguchi managed to score with short punches, and Tomimatsu answered with knees. Yamaguchi took Tomimatsu down on two occasions, but it was not until the second round that she really began to take control. Yamaguchi scored numerous takedowns in round two and threatened with an armbar, and she then landed punches when the fight returned to the feet in the final minute.

Yamaguchi may move on to challenge Jewels champion Ayaka Hamasaki later this year.

In other MMA action on the 20th Ring card, promotional poster girl Shizuka Sugiyama (7-3) took a split-decision victory over veteran Megumi Yabushita (19-20) in a bout that was much closer than many had anticipated. Sugiyama set the tone early on with punches and knees on the feet, but Yabushita countered with takedowns and a guillotine-choke attempt.

Round two was contested almost entirely on the ground, and both fighters worked diligently for submissions. Yabushita tried for an ankle lock before the final bell, but time expired. Two judges scored the fight for Sugiyama, who was competing for the first time since December 2010.

Final Valkyrie flyweight champion Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada (13-8-3) put an end to her four-fight losing streak by becoming the first woman to stop Naoko Omuro (13-9-4) in the pair’s third meeting. Tamada, who entered the fight with a 1-0-1 record against Omuro, took down her opponent early in the second round and transitioned to back control. She then spun into the fight-ending armbar as referee Ryogaku Wada stepped in for the technical-submission stoppage at the 1:05 mark of round two.

Club Barbarian prospect Satomi Takano (1-0) began her pro career with a big win over 2010 Jewels Rough Stone GP finalist Yukiko Seki (11-22). Takano took down Seki at will and attempted a variety of submissions. Seki rallied with strikes late in the fight, but it was not enough to steal back the victory.

MMA debutant Naomi Taniyama (1-0 amateur) made short work of winless journeywoman Nana “Chanchin” Ichikawa (0-12) in an amateur preliminary-card bout. Taniyama took Ichikawa down and secured an armbar for the technical submission win at the 1:29 mark of round one.

Herrig bounced back from a disappointing loss to Carla Esparza in her XFC debut by defeating “Little” Patricia Vidonic at XFC 17 in April. Surprising some, Herrig was able to beat Vidonic at her own game and dominated the fight with takedowns and ground and pound. She has won three of her past four fights. Soukupova, meanwhile, opened her pro career with a pair of TKO victories, but she is coming off of a unanimous-decision setback to Karla Benitez in August. She now returns to action for the first time in close to a year and makes her U.S. debut in the bout with Herrig.

XFC 19 airs live this Friday night on AXS TV (formerly HDNet).

Quick results

Christina Marks (3-5) def. Rebecca Jones (0-1) via submission (guillotine choke) at the 47-second mark of round one at “Xplode Fight Series: Eclipse” on July 28 in Valley Center, Calif. The quick victory got Marks back on track after submission setbacks to Sara McMann and Michelle Ould in her past two fights.

Katalina Malungahu (2-0) def. Ericka Newsome (0-1) via KO (punches) at the 36-second mark of round one at “Chaos in the Cage 11: Xtreme Couture vs. Southern California” on July 28 in Lancaster, Calif. Malungahu has won all five of her pro and amateur bouts via a form of knockout and is one of the top new prospects in the featherweight division. Newsome had compiled a 5-0 amateur record prior to the loss in her pro debut.

MMAjunkie.com publishes the Women’s MMA Report every other Monday. Its author, Robert Sargent, is a veteran MMA journalist who also runs MMARising.com. Feel free to email us at news [AT] mmajunkie.com with any questions, news tips or suggestions.

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